


Merlin the Big Brother

by Fire_and_Roses



Category: Merlin (TV)
Genre: Merlin is awsome, badass merlin, slight mentions of abuse
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-06-19
Updated: 2020-03-30
Packaged: 2020-05-14 10:07:48
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 5,657
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19271062
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Fire_and_Roses/pseuds/Fire_and_Roses
Summary: There have never been rules that protect the Castle staff from nobles, so when some visiting knights try to take advantage of thestaff of Camelot, Merlin snaps. (I hate it when Merlin is portrayed as helpless, HE IS NOT!) This takes place in the first year ofArthurs reign





	1. Chapter 1

Merlin looked around the crowded room, King Arthur had announced for a banquet to be thrown in honor of some noble who had just arrived with his knights this morning. Merlin inwardly groaned,

_I won’t be able to even see my bed until at least after midnight with the way this feast is going._

He glanced at the barely buzzed prince as he motioned for his glass to be filled, Merlin pushed himself out of his lean on the pillar and walked over to him.

“How much longer are you planning on staying here Arthur?” Merlin grumbled as he refilled the prince’s goblet,

“Oh stop whining Merlin I’ll just be a little longer.” Arthur reached for his goblet and took a sip, “this feast is in honor of Sir Gerard, an old friend of mine, I can’t very well leave the feast early because my manservant wants to now sleep can I? Besides, all you have to do is make sure my goblet doesn't run dry.” Merlin rolled his eyes and muttered “prat” just loud enough for Arthur to hear before returning to his pillar. He closed his eyes and leaned his head back.

Sir Gerard and his knights had something of a reputation among the staff for not keeping their hands to themselves, it had put everyone on edge for the duration of his stay and nowadays it was rare to see a maid walking around alone, especially at night. Luckily, the steward had heard these rumors and made sure that none of the maids had been put in charge of the visitors. However, that meant that Merlin now had the responsibility of taking care of the first knight, Sir Gerard, who, it’s said, is the worst of them all. Because of these visiting nobles, many of the staff had taken it upon themselves to walk the maids home or at least a good distance to it just to be safe. Merlin among them.

Merlin had a reputation himself among the staff for making ‘problems’, as they called it, go away. It started with one of the knights of a visiting party about six months ago, he had gotten drunk and decided that he wanted to have some fun with one of the maids, she got away as fast as she could and promptly ran around a corner, right into Merlin.

“Elizabeth!” Merlin reached to help her up, only to pull back at the girls flinch, she raised her eyes to meet his, Merlin saw the tears streaming down her face and immediately collapsed next to her. Tentatively wrapping his arms around her as he did so. They stayed in that position for several moments, Elizabeth sobbing into his shoulder. He waited for her to make the first move then helped her to her feet. When she was standing Merlin placed a hand on her cheek and tilted it up, her eyes met his and she almost took a step back. The playful, cheery face that Merlin usually wore was replaced by grim expression, she had never seen an anger this deep on his face before.

“Elizabeth, who did this.” A frozen undertone coated his words and it sent a shiver down her spine She took a deep breath to steady herself.

“Alcott” Elizabeth clenched her fists and looked down. Merlins grip on her cheek tightened and the anger on his face became clear, he schooled his expression and looked around at the deserted hallway before turning to her with a stone-like expression.

“Let me take you home.” He lowered his hand and offered his elbow to escort her, Elizabeth nodded and looped her hand through his arm, they walked to her home in silence. When they got to her door he turned to her with clenched fists.

“You won’t have to worry about Alcott anymore,” A sharpness coated his words, his face a mask. “He won’t bother you, or anyone else again.” With that he turned and strode back in the direction of the castle.

* * *

 

The next day Elizabeth got dressed and headed to the kitchen to help prepare food for the early risers, when she got there most of the staff were leisurely preparing the food, which wasn’t out of the ordinary it was quite early after all. Elizabeth took a deep breath and steeled herself to start the day. It wasn’t until five past dawn that Merlin came racing in mumbling incoherent sentences along the lines of “prat” and “making me get up this early,” however when he locked eyes with Elizabeth she noticed a purple bruise on his jaw, striking against his pale skin. His pace slowed, he glanced around the now crowded room and walked over to her.

“If you hear anything like that happening again please tell me,” he whispered, “I can get in trouble without losing my job or worse if something happens,” he smiled, “ perks of being the manservant to the King.”

He placed his hand on her shoulder. She nodded, then pecked Merlin on the cheek before going back to washing dishes, Merlin smiled at her then took a couple steps towards the door before rushing back to her,

“Oh and can you do me a favor, don’t tell the knights about this.”

with that he promptly rushed out of the room, no doubt about to be lectured by Arthur for being late again.

About thirty minutes later an energetic young servant named Carter burst through the doors, dirty dishes in hand. With a shudder Elizabeth realized that Cater was the servant in charge of lord Alcott, she turned back to her task and tried to wipe those memories from her mind. However she looked up again when she noticed that a group had formed around him, she thought about Alcott taking his anger out on him and a coldness crept through her body.

“...bruise on his cheek an’ I’m sure his ribs are broken by the way he was walkin’.” Elizabeth abandoned the dishes and moved over to the group, desperate to hear more.

“What was that about the broken rib?” Elizabeth cut in, Carter turned to her, his mouth a full on grin.

“Alcott looked like he was beaten up pretty bad las’ night Liz,” he chuckled, “reckon tha’s justice don’ ya’ think? Full on bully he was.” Elizabeth couldn’t hold back a smile at that, though inwardly she wondered how Merlin had done it, Alcott was a big man and Merlin well… wasn’t. _He must have told one of the knights_ , she mused, and thought about which  one Merlin would have gone to, but Merlins earlier statement brought her back to the present. she cleared her throat,

“Last night Merlin said that he would take care of Alcott after… something happened,” she cursed herself for not thinking about what she was going to say beforehand, but trudged on, “He said that if anything happens with visitors or knights to just tell him.” One of the maids snorted, which was met with glares from the small crowd.

“I mean, I love Merlin as much as anyone and sure he can do a thing of two when it comes down to it but… have you met the guy?” she grinned “he’s about as dangerous to a man like Alcott as a butterfly to a bear.”

“Well he probably got one of the knights to do it Abigail, they would totally trust him if he said that Alcott was…” another maid trailed off, glancing at Elizabeth, then at her feet. “I know I’m telling Merlin if something like this happens.”

She glared at Abigail, then looked back at Elizabeth with a smile, “I’ll spread the word.” she nodded at me, then went back to slicing some carrots. Silence fell for a moment, everyone looking everywhere but Elizabeth.

“I’ll tell people too,” Carter smiled, “If he can make an oaf like Alcott look like _that_ , he’s got my respect.”

Gradually the others agreed, with a smile Elizabeth returned to her job.

*****

Later, Elizabeth had to bring down some rags to the armory, she silently prayed that none of the visiting knights were in there, when she walked in she breathed a sigh of relief, the knights of the round table were there, but other than that the place was deserted. Some of them turned to see who had come in, when they saw her they ether smiled or gave a nod before returning to their conversation.

As she pulled open the cabinet to put away the polishing rags someone called to her.

“Excuse me ma’am, but you wouldn’t happen to know about the bruise on Merlin's face would you?” She turned around abruptly to find four pairs of eyes trained on her, It became evident that while Gwaine had posed the question, they were all looking for an answer. Elizabeth quickly looked down and could feel her cheeks getting hot, she wasn’t used to this kind of attention from knights. She was about to answer truthfully but Merlins request came to her mind.

“No, I’m sorry Sir Gwaine, the staff  thought that you would know,” find their faces in various ranges of suspicion, she gulped. The sound of footsteps brought the attention away from her, she saw Merlin stagger into the room carrying a teetering pile of what must be Arthur’s armor in need of polishing. A chorus of greetings came from the knights and Elizabeth as they erased all signs of their previous conversation from their faces. Elizabeth bowed to the knights and began the walk back to the kitchen when something dawned on her, if none of the knights knew how Merlin had gotten that bruse, how did Sir Alcott get beaten up? _Surely not from Merlin,_ she shook her head and smiled. However it happened, she decided, she was glad that it did.

* * *

 

At the first chance Elizabeth could, she wanted to talk to Merlin alone, so at the end of the day she went to the physician's chambers, remembering that he was the physicians apprentice. For a second she marveled at the servant's bandwidth, to be able to work full time as the king’s manservant would work anyone ragged, especially with all the hunting trips and quests that the king drags him on, but to take on the duties of an apprentice was incredible. No wonder Merlin is never on time in the mornings, she smiled. When she reached the top of the stairs she knocked on the door of the infirmary. She was met with a grinning, if not haggard Merlin.

“Hello Liz,” He motioned for her to come inside and shut the door behind him. “I hope you don’t mind if I chop these herbs while we talk? Gaius needs these for tonight.” He gestured for her to sit while he made his way over to the counter and picked up the knife to resume his chore.

“Not at all,” Elizabeth responded as she sat down at the table and flashed a smile, which Merlin returned in full. “I just wanted to thank you again for… taking care of Alcott,” she started. His chopping slowed as he looked up at her, then regained its pace as he focused back on his task.

“It’s no problem,” he responded lightly, “I honestly… don’t think I could have lived with myself if I didn’t do something.” he admitted, his eyes still trained on the herbs. his voice had lost most of its cheer, a somber tone replacing it. Elizabeth took a deep breath and continued,

“Merlin, how did he…where did you get your bruise?” she changed her question, cursing her cowardice. Merlin looked up with a grin that didn’t quite reach his eyes and put down the knife.

“Well I think it would be a bit foolish to think that Alcott wouldn’t put up a fight now would it?” He chuckled and walked around the counter to sit opposite her. Elizabeth’s breath caught, so he had at least participated in teaching Alcott a lesson,

“Who helped you with him?” she asked, Merlin gave a wry smile and licked his lips.

“One of the knights,” he responded, the smile still in place.

“Which one? You asked for me to keep it a secret from the knights, why would you say something like that when one of them knows?” she pressed, intrigued by his vague answer. Merlin pushed himself up from the bench and walked back to the unfinished herbs.

“Lets just say it was one of the knights and leave it at that,” he chuckled and picked up his knife to resume chopping.

“But I would like to know who to thank for doing that, can’t you please tell me his name?”

she pressed, Merlin paused for a moment and looked at her with a bemused expression on his face. Then, after a moment he shifted his grip on the knife so that it faced downward to the table. Without a word, he drove the knife downward into the wood.

after a moment he released the grip and stood back, the knife was at least _halfway_ into the dense oak of the table. Elizabeth stared, transferring her focus from the knife that was still stuck fast, to the man who had performed such a feat. Merlin was watching her expression with a lazy grin, after a moment of silence he gripped the handle again and jerked the knife out of the wood.

"It was just one of the Knights Liz, there's no need to search farther than that, right?"

He Examined the knife for a moment to give Elizabeth some time to form her thoughts. Then he placed the knife down and walked over to her, offering his hand to help her rise. She allowed herself to be guided to the door, still shocked by what she had just witnessed. When they got to the doorway she paused,

“How did you…” she stared at his rueful expression, then at the hand that had performed that impossible feat. He chuckled, then shifted his grip to lightly hold her palm.

“Good night Elizabeth,” he bent down and brushed his lips to her hand. All traces of the goofy idiot that had been so familiar to her were gone, instead stood someone new.

“Well, thank you again for taking care of Alcott, I know who to tell in the future.” She started out the door when she felt a hand on her arm.

“Liz,”

she turned back to Merlin, who let his hand fall to his side, his smile had shifted to something bittersweet, something counseling a sadness behind that mask.

“I would greatly appreciate it if you kept our little… conversation a secret,” his eyes dropped to the floor, suddenly bashful. Elizabeth smiled,

“Your secret’s safe with me Merlin.”

She leaned forward and brushed her lips against his cheekbone before running down the hall to finish with her chores.

_It’s funny,_ Elizabeth thought as she made her way down to the kitchen, _everyone has always thought of Merlin as a little brother. turns out he’s like a big brother to everyone he knows._

She chuckled at the thought and opened the doors to the kitchen to help clean up after the regular chaos that is dinnertime.

In the week following the ‘incident’ Sir Alcott remained utterly respectful to the entire staff, or at least more respectful than before, and despite all the pleading and coaxing that the visitors subjected him to, so as to punish the knight who did this (for who else could have beaten Sir Alcott so thoroughly?), he never revealed the identity of his attacker. Although many rumors started to fly around about who had done it, in fact, whenever Elizabeth or Merlin caught wind of a particularly far-fetched story they would pull each other to the side to share a laugh about it.

“Did you hear about the latest story?” Merlin said as he caught up with her in the hallway three days after the incident with Alcott.

“Was it the one about how Alcott had taken one of Gwaine's apples while they were both drunk?” Merlin snorted but kept going,

“Nope,” he said, “but yours is better. So,” Merlin began, “Apparently Gwaine had lost a bet to Alcott when they were both stone drunk and he got so angry that he went straight for Alcott and they fought like angry drunken messes until one of the other knights found them.”

Merlin finished with a snort, they both shared a chuckle before Merlin waved goodbye and raced off in the direction of the princes chambers. Two days later more rumors were in circulation, however most of them got one thing right, this had something to do with Elizabeth and Merlin. They, of course, got bombarded with questions at every turn. However both stubbornly kept quiet, to the dismay of the gossiping staff. Eventually, once the visiting lords left Camelot, things died down a little and life continued normally. However now people had started to pay more attention to the young servant. likewise more people came to Merlin after someone had abused them in some way. Slowly, Merlin gained the reputation that he now has, the protector. None of the staff knows how he manages to do it, but everyone knows not to ask anymore.

      Even king Arther began to see a change within the castle, a comforting relaxation that he had not realized there was an absence of. However, when he asked his manservant about the change Merlin skirted around the question, making an excuse about washing clothing or some rubbish. After two weeks of asking, coaxing, and threatening, he decided to drop the question. If he couldn’t know the reason behind this change, _it would be better to leave it be_ , he decided. 


	2. Chapter 2

Alice and Beatrix made their way down to the washroom in the heat of the afternoon, chatting amicably about anything interesting that had happened around the citadel. 

“They  _ were _ I tell you,” Alice said, “Thea caught Tybalt and Isabel in the broom closet snogging, and-”  

“I’ll believe it when I see it Alice, they can’t be in a relationship, Tybalt isn’t Izzy’s type.” 

Both girls stopped when a certain raven-haired boy darted into view around a corner and sprinted towards them.

“Alice! Trix! wonderful to see you both, sorry gotta go bye!” Merlin sprinted past them and around another corner. 

“ _ Merlin  _ ” Both girls broke out into grins as their disgruntled sovereign raced around the corner where Merlin had appeared. They noticed that the King had a rather large wine stain on the front of his shirt. Arthur slowed, 

“Did either of you see my idiot of a manservant come down here?” 

he said while craning his neck to try to see around a corner. The two glanced at each other for a moment, 

“No sire, I apologize, we haven’t seen Merlin all afternoon.” Before Alice could finish, Arthur raced down the hallway opposite to the direction that Merlin went. 

“Thank you for your time!” Arthur called back as he sprinted out of sight. As soon as the King fell out of earshot The girls fell into a fit of laughter.

“Our great protectors are at it again Trix,” Alice managed through giggles, 

“I just hope Merlin doesn’t get into too much trouble, did you see the size of that stain?” Beatrix chuckled. 

“What did you mean protectors?”

Both girls jumped at the deep voice behind them. A knight, Sir Elyan, stepped out from an archway, a book in his hand. “I apologize for eavesdropping, it was not my intention, I like to come to this part of the castle to read and it was most comfortable in there,” The knight rushed to explain. “And I heard you say ‘our great  _ protectors  _ ’, plural.” The girls exchanged a glance and both struggled to find an excuse. 

“You must have misheard me,” Alice smiled after a moment, “I’m sure I said  _ protector, _ King Arthur is the protector of Camelot...and why would I call  _ Merlin _ a protector?” she finished with a nervous laugh, Beatrix inwardly slapped her hand to her face, Alice was never a good liar. 

Elyan cleared his throat, “yes… yes I must have misheard you then,” He said, suspicion evident on his face. “I apologize for keeping you from your duties.” 

With that, the Knight gave a slight bow which they returned, and strode off. The girls exchanged anxious glances, 

“Do you think he believed that?” Alice whispered, 

“I have no idea.”

“Well… what reason does he have to think that I called  _ Merlin _ a protector? Have you seen the man?” Alice reasoned, 

“You’re right Alice, let’s… let’s just forget about it.” 

Alice hoisted her basket higher on her hip and the two resumed their walk to the washroom. 

 

Elyan walked down the dim hallway, lost in thought.

_ ‘Could Merlin really be the one who has been watching out for the staff these last few months?’ _   After a moment, Elyan shook his head with a smile. ‘ _ I can’t possibly think that  _ Merlin  _ is the mysterious protector.’ _ he chuckled,  _ ‘the idea is too ridiculous.’  _

Although as he thought about it, the idea began to make some semblance of sense. It obviously wasn’t Merlin who roughed up the wrong-doers, but he could easily be the vigilantes  _ informer _ . It became more and more plausible in the knights mind. He resolved to keep a closer eye on his friend. 

In the weeks after, Elyan watched Merlin more closely, noticing the Merlin-centric whispers and gossip from the maids more often and silently following the servant when he could, but to no avail. From what Elyan could see, when Merlin was dismissed, he simply performed his apprenticeship duties or went to bed, sometimes stopping to talk with any friendly faces he might see. Frustrated, Elyan gave up after two weeks of this stalking.

 ‘ _ It was a long shot anyway.’   _

Elyan shook his head after his final night of watching Merlin. A visiting party had arrived two days prior, sparking his hopes of finding the mysterious savior. Elyan turned away from the physicians door that Merlin had stepped through moments before, and began to walk to his chambers.

“...cannot keep doing this Merlin, or you’ll surely be caught!”

Elyan froze mid-step as Gaius’s voice floated through the door, he turned and crept towards the door. Hiding in such a way that if the door opened he would be concealed. 

“I don’t care Gaius, he hurt her.” 

Merlin’s angered voice penetrated the door and Elyan heard footsteps getting louder. Gaius sighed, 

“Very well my boy, I suppose I won’t be able to talk you out of this recklessness.” 

“Me? Reckless? Never.” 

Merlin opened the door and immediately made his way up the stairs. Once the boy was a safe distance away, Elyan scrambled to his feet and hastened to catch up with the enigmatic young servant. 

Elyan realized with a start that Merlin wasn’t heading to any of the knights chambers, but to the visitors wing. 

_ ‘Perhaps that is where him and the protector had decided to meet?’  _

Elyan reasoned, Merlin stopped in front of the door of a visiting lord, Lord Brian, and knocked. There was some shuffling and a mumbled ‘who is it’ behind the door, understandable as there was a feast this evening to celebrate… something or other, Elyan couldn’t remember every happy event that required a feast. The door finally opened, revealing a very disheveled-looking Lord. 

“Whaddaya’ want boy?” Lord Brian grumbled, 

“The Prince requires an audience.” Merlin stated, and things clicked into place. 

_ ‘I’m an idiot.’ _ Elyan thought,  _ ‘ A bloody idiot _ .’ Of course the King was the one punishing the lords for harming the servants, how had he not seen that before? Elyan shook his head and looked back at the two. The lord had straightened and stepped outside of his chambers. 

“Why didn’t the prince  speak with me this evenin’?” The lord grumbled, 

“I do not know, my lord.” 

Merlin turned and began to walk the way he came. Elyan followed. 

_ ‘Strange’   _ Elyan thought as Merlin rounded a corner and began to walk down the stairs, the lord following suite,  _ ‘they aren’t heading towards Arthur’s chambers.’  _ Elyan watched as Merlin led the surly lord to the west wing, which was nearly always deserted. People Avoided the west wing as much as they could due to rumors that a sorcerer had lived there before the purge. Elyan could tell that the lord was getting more and more suspicious as he looked at his surroundings. 

“Why would th’ prince ask to meet me here, boy?” Lord Brian hissed at the servant in front of him. Merlin stopped and faced the lord, his face an unfamiliar mask. 

“He didn’t.” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know it's been a really long time sorry! this has been sitting in my computer for months now and I really have no excuse for not putting it up.


	3. Chapter 3

_ Merlin stopped and faced the lord, his face an unfamiliar mask.  _

_ “He didn’t.”  _

A range of emotions crossed Lord Brian’s face, first surprise, then confusion, then anger. 

“You mean to tell me that you woke me up at a hellish time of night for  _ nothing _ .” He hissed, a dangerous look on his face. Elyan took a step forward, ready to stop the lord if need be.

“No, I woke you up for something,” A flash of a smile crossed Merlin’s mouth, “it just wasn’t for the prince, who is currently sleeping off a night of wine.” Merlin’s hands were clasped behind his back, a dark grin on his face. Elyan stopped his approach. 

Lord Brian scanned the hallway, making sure they were alone.  “You’ll regret taking me to a place so deserted, boy” he sneered, “No one will hear you scream.” 

At that, Merlin laughed loudly. The familiar boisterous sound echoing in the silent hall.

“My lord, Why do you think I took you here?”

Elyan watched horrified as Lord Brian swung wildly at the servant, Merlin ducked away from the blow and countered by kneeing him in the side. 

The knight stood mesmerized as his friend dodged the next two swings that the Lord took. Merlin ducked under Lord Brian’s right hook, and with a strength that Elyan would never have thought possible from the servant, shoved the Lord into the wall. 

His head collided into the stone bricks with a sickening thud, he slid to a crouch beneath the young servant. Merlin watched the Lord struggle to his feet, then grabbed his shoulders and shoved his knee into the Lord’s nose. Lord Brian gasped and jerked away from the boy, his head hitting the wall behind him and crimson blood trickling across his face. Merlin took a step back as the Lord stumbled to the floor.

Merlin looked down at him, disgust marring his face. Merlin grabbed the Lord’s neck, shoving him into the wall. 

“You are going to tell me what happened, my Lord.” The lord vainly struggled against his grip.

 “If you tell the truth I may be less severe, though I wouldn’t count on it.” Merlin drew his hand away from Lord Brian’s neck and took a step back, the Lord slid to the floor, his back against the wall. 

“I don’t…” his words were cut off by a series of hacking coughs, the blood on his face seeping down into his mouth and nightshirt. “I don’t know what you’re talking about,” he gasped, “I don’t know what you want.” 

“No? How about this, I’ll explain what I know, and you tell me if it rings a bell, yeah?” Merlin’s voice was casual, as if they were discussing the food from last night’s feast. Merlin bent down and pulled a black dagger from his boot. He began to pace in front of the man, twirling the blade in his hand menacingly. 

“Two nights ago, you asked a passing maid for a wineskin to be brought to your chambers.” Elyan saw the Lord turn pale, his eyes tracking the knife’s movement. Merlin continued to pace, the dagger catching the torchlight every couple of moments.

 “When she returned with it, you told her to set it on the table, then locked the door behind her.” 

Merlin stopped directly in front of him, the knife clenched in his hand. His voice had turned icy, and though Elyan couldn’t see his face, the horrified expression Lord Brian was wearing gave him some indication. 

“I…I didn’t… she was-” 

“Lying? Exaggerating?” Merlin cut him off with a roar, “And the bruises on her wrists? Are those fake as well? Or the ones around her neck?” 

Merlin grabbed Lord Brian’s shirt and shoved him against the wall again. He drew back his fist and swung at his nose, the force of the blow caused the Lord’s head to smash against the stone, drawing a cry of pain. Merlin grabbed the shirt again, the Lord’s bloody face inches from his own, the dagger pressed against his neck so hard it drew blood. 

“The sole reason that I am not  _ gutting _ you where you stand is because that could end your families’ treaty with the King,” Merlin spoke in such a low voice that even in the echoic hallway Elyan was forced to lean in. 

“But make no mistake, my Lord, if another such incident should occur in your time here, I can assure you, no one will ever find what will be  _ left _ of your body.” 

The Lord let out an undignified whimper as the blade glided across his neck, blood seeping into his nightshirt. Merlin took a step back.

“Now,” his voice slipped back into the cool and professional tone, “I expect an anonymous and lavish gift to be delivered to miss Emelyn by the end of tomorrow, just give it to one of the staff with her name written, they’ll make sure she gets it.” 

“I’ll report this, I will.” The Lord’s voice had seemed an octave higher than what it was. Merlin’s laugh caused the Lord to flinch.

“And what will you tell them? The skinny, clumsy, serving boy beat an experienced knight to a pulp? Hell, half the castle has seen me sparring with the prince, who would believe you?” Merlin wore a bright smile as he walked towards the Lord.

“So um… do yourself a favor, don’t speak a word of this when you wake up.”

A look of confusion crossed over the Lords face, 

“When I wake--”

Merlin slammed the Lord’s head back against the wall with enough force to jar the nearby torch. Lord Bryan’s body slumped against Merlin’s. Elyan could hear the string of curses and made out Merlin’s voice. 

“Oh brilliant move Merlin, nicely done. Now you get to drag the full-sized  _ bastard _ up three flights of stairs in the dead of night. Bloody fantastic.” 

Elyan smiled at that, now that sounded more like his Merlin. He watched as the man scanned the hallway, then whisper something unintelligible. For a moment the torchlight reflected off his eyes in such a way that it seemed as though they were a brilliant gold. Elyan made sure he was comfortably hidden as the man began to drag the unconscious body of Lord Bryan up the stairs. He noticed that although the man was bigger than even he was, Merlin seemed to drag him up with considerably little effort, almost as if he was dragging a rather unusual blanket. Once the boy was out of sight, Elyan started back to his chambers to think over the events that had transpired tonight. He was going to need wine. A lot of wine.

***   
When Elyan arrived at his chambers, he poured himself a full goblet of the wine he kept for special occasions, because if this didn’t count as one, he didn't know what would. After drinking a mouthful, he leaned back. 

_ Okay, what do I know.  _ He thought.  _ Merlin is somehow an amazing fighter, even though he can’t swing a blade to save his life. He’s been terrorizing Lords that hurt the staff. If any of the people who know about him fessed up, he would most likely be hanged for it. _

Elyan sighed and reached for his goblet again, swallowing another mouthful. Struck by a sudden idea, the knight set his goblet down and made for the physicians chambers, hoping to learn more.

As he rounded the last stair, he heard a voice behind him,

“Elyan? What are you doing here so late at night? Is something wrong?” 

Elyan jolted and turned to see the concerned face of his friend, who was, Elyan noted, completely clean of blood. 

“Yes, Merlin you gave me quite the scare.” Merlin smiled, and they began to walk together,

“I can’t sleep,” Elyan said, “I was hoping for one of Gaius’s tonics.” 

Merlin clicked his tongue, 

“Sorry mate, fresh out. I could make you some if you like,” Merlin said as they reached the door.

“No, don’t bother, I can manage the night.” They exchanged goodbyes and Elyan began to walk towards his chambers until he heard the door close, then he made his way back as quietly as he could.

“... yes yes Gaius no blood on him or in the hallway I’m not an idiot.” Elyan pressed his ear to the door to listen in,

“And you made sure that he won’t recognize your face?” Gaius’s voice sounded irritated, but with a resigned note to it. 

“Yes Gaius I know the drill, and I made sure I wasn’t seen.”

“Know the drill… This shouldn’t be a  _ drill _ in the first place! Had I known you were going to make a habit out of this I would have stopped you from the beginning!” 

“Well I wasn’t going to just stand idly by while people are getting hurt was I? I’m not heartless.”

“All it takes is one slip up! One mistake and--”   
“And I would be killed  _ I know _ , but Gaius I’m not going to stop, so either get used to it or out me.”

There was a pause in the conversation, Elyan strained to hear more.

“You know that’ll never happen, my boy.” Gaius said after a moment,

“I know, Goodnight Gaius.”

“Get some rest, Merlin.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I realized as I made this that Uther is still the king not Arthur but the knights are still there, so...

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks For reading!


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